Akhmetov appointment as PM to allow Kazakh govt to work as usual

Earlier on Monday, the lower house of Kazakhstan’s parliament endorsed the appointment of Serik Akhmetov as the country’s prime minister

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ASTANA, September 24 (Itar-Tass) — The government of Kazakhstan headed by Serik Akhmetov will be able without slowing down to continue to prepare for a second wave of economic crisis, President Nursultan Nazarbayev thus commented on the personnel decision taken on Monday.

“Serik Akhmetov is a well-known person in our country. He has passed all stages of the work: started as an ordinary worker, a metallurgical engineer at Karmetkombinat (Karaganda metallurgical combine), then headed the city of Temirtau, the Karaganda Region, held the office of a minister, then first deputy prime minister. He is in the know, which will ensure continuity and a soft transition of power in the government,” Nursultan Nazarbayev said at a briefing after a plenary meeting of the Majilis of the national parliament.

“I think that this (change) will allow us, without slowing down, to continue the work and prepare for the possible second wave of the crisis about which everyone is talking now,” he added.

Earlier on Monday, the lower house of Kazakhstan’s parliament endorsed the appointment of Serik Akhmetov as the country’s prime minister. “All the three factions of the Majilis (parliament’s lower house) have supported the candidature of Kazakhstan’s new Prime Minister Serik Akhmetov,” Deputy Mukhtar Tinikeyev said. His colleague Murat Abanov said Kazakhstan’s president had issued an order to appoint Serik Akhmetov as the country’s prime minister. “The order on the appointment of Akhmetov has been signed right now,” MP Abenov said.

The Kazakh head of state praised the work of the government led by Prime Minister Karim Massimov, who on Monday was appointed head of the presidential administration of Kazakhstan. “He worked during the world’s biggest financial and economic crisis, and our country has triumphantly overcome it, which is largely the merit of the government and Prime minister,” Nazarbayev said. According to him, the appointment of Massimov to the post of the chief of the presidential administration is a logical step, since this body controls the implementation of government programs and the government’s work in general.

“Usually governments are changed when the situation emerges in which the country’s economic, social position is weakened and the society demands it. We have a different situation, it happened in our country because the prime minister tendered resignation. He had also done this last year, but when a person is tired and wants to change the position, and explains this by saying that we need a new person, I heeded the request and relieved him (Massimov) from office, accepting his resignation,” the president concluded.